


Tics

by BlaiseKillmonger



Category: Black Panther (2018), Marvel, Marvel Cinematic Universe
Genre: Angst, April Fools' Day, Eventual Smut, Fluff, Inappropriate Erections, M/M, Nipple Play, Nipple Torture, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Play Fighting, Possibly Unrequited Love, Romance, Sexual Confusion
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-04-07
Updated: 2018-04-07
Packaged: 2019-04-19 15:59:05
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,895
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14240781
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/BlaiseKillmonger/pseuds/BlaiseKillmonger
Summary: Everybody has a tic, and sometimes it can be embarrassing.Erik learns that the hard way. Literally.





	Tics

**Author's Note:**

> This started as a 700 word one shot for April Fools' Day and now it's this. As I'm re-writing my works, here's something to enjoy. Feedback's always appreciated!
> 
> *update - I didn't even notice this work is the 200th in the T'Cherik/Killchalla category! What an honor it is, keep up the good work to every writer on here!

When Erik was younger, he always celebrated Easter with a traditional hunt. It was a rush to find the most eggs and it made him feel like he was the best person in the world. But once his father died, he found it less easy to see the fun in anything. But there was a solution to his constant despair – upon discovery of his existence, his unknown cousin T'Challa urged that the boy should be brought home. By blood it was only fair he lived where he belonged and T'Challa smiled watching Erik walk into the Royal Talon Flyer. He had a new friend to play with. They were both eight and excited to discover the world, but Erik was mostly looking forward to celebrating everything that had become just a date in a dark calendar; Christmas, Thanksgiving and especially Easter.  

But now the two Wakandans were in their twenties and all those years made a huge difference. 

Erik decided to carry out his education in America and took occasional trips, although his time in the United States merely made him appreciate Wakanda even more. 

T'Challa didn't have as much time to have fun with Erik because of his introduction to the role of the Black Panther and every time he did see Erik, he had dark circles under his eyes. Erik felt bad but knew it was what T'Challa was born into, so the least he could do was carry T'Challa to his bed every time he'd passed out on the chair. The first day of April had arrived so the next time T'Challa was asleep, Erik was busy drawing whiskers on the unconscious man's face. The pen itched T'Challa's nose and it twitched, scaring Erik.  

"Erik..."  

Erik believed the prank was over until he realized T'Challa was still asleep and hadn't even opened his eyes remotely. It made him wonder if T'Challa was dreaming about him, but he didn't care as much as what would happen if T'Challa woke up. With no hesitation, he left T'Challa to sleep and took the pen with him, throwing it through the open door of Shuri's room before going into his and T'Challa's room. He knew T'Challa would eventually walk in when he woke up but it was so worth it. Nearly two hours later, it was even more worth it.  

"Erik!" T'Challa shouted, his voice could be heard from their room and Erik stifled his laughter, knowing T'Challa was in the bathroom at that exact point. He counted down how many steps it would take for the door to be slammed open and he was only off by two, looking away as if he had been doing nothing instead of waiting to see his angry cousin's reaction. T'Challa didn't look impressed and huffed at the sight of his cousin holding back his grin, mouth quivering from the pressure not to burst out into laughter. "This is not funny!"  

T'Challa's face couldn't be taken seriously when it was angry due to the whiskers, and him crossing his arms didn't help.  

"Wh-what are you on about?"   

Erik was practically holding his breath and T'Challa pointed at his nose and under his eyes, motioning the words 'duh' with the way he pointed and looked at Erik.   

"Oh, th-those things? They look cute on yo-hoo-hoo-" Erik couldn't restrict his chuckle and held his stomach, falling back on the bed weak with the giggles. T'Challa watched Erik laugh and couldn't take it anymore, pouncing on his prey like a panther and Erik couldn't counter it. They were rolling around on the bed until both of them fell off and landed on the carpet below them, still brawling. T'Challa was on top of him and pinned both arms to the floor with the strength of one hand thanks to his training, panting to catch his breath and Erik was repeating his actions below him. Their chests danced up and down and if heartbeats were louder both of them would be deaf. He straddled Erik, sitting on his stomach while on his own knees.  

"You  _dare_ to ridicule the future king?" T'Challa questioned with a devilish grin, but Erik matched it with a psychotic laugh.  

"What are you going to do about it?"  

Erik was never submissive but for his cousin he could entertain it, even implying that something should have been done about it. T'Challa always wrestled with Erik whenever there was something to dispute about and had learned effective methods that made Erik squirm with fear at even the mention.  

"I could leave my saliva on your face," he threatened, making a noise that genuinely feared Erik. But he didn't show it.  

"Ain't nothing cuz, we've shared forks before."  

Every week was the same with the two, they'd always start a battle of power and find different ways to torture each other. The previous week, Erik borrowed T'Challa's headphones without asking and was made to slap himself for five minutes but it paled in comparison to the week before, where T'Challa stole the television remote and found himself being forced to yell 'uncle' after having his cheeks pinched and twisted. 

"You think you're so tough," T'Challa suggested, grabbing at the skin under Erik's shirt and Erik tried slapping his hands away but failed. There was no courage he could even attempt to display as he laughed wildly, slapping T'Challa's forearms and pulling at his hair but T'Challa wasn't easily thrown off. 

"Fuck-hing  _sto_ _-hop_!" He yelled, almost crying with giggles at the touch of T'Challa's lengthy fingers digging into his ribs. T'Challa rarely heard Erik beg, or even laugh like this, and it was something to be savored. Now his dreads were all over the place and T'Challa allowed his cousin to breathe. 

"Apologize and all will be forgiven." 

Erik caught his breath and looked at him but it felt different. He told himself it was from all the laughing, but something seemed unusual. There was something about being pinned under T'Challa, the evil smile, the taunting voice and his dominance that was... _attractive_. But he couldn't feel this way, especially about his own cousin. Unfortunately for him, he couldn't persuade the member between his legs of the same thing. 

"Get off me, T'Challa." 

"Have it your way." 

T'Challa admired his braveness and pinched the right nipple belonging to Erik through his shirt, which earned him an almost immediate yell. It hurt Erik, but it hurt him so  _good_. It made him feel guilty, because T'Challa was just having fun, and he was being turned on by it, knowing T'Challa would never intend to do that. 

"Get the fuck off my damn nipple!" Erik groaned, nearly screaming.   

"Apologize," he teased.  

"Please, man!"  

Erik wasn't desperate from the pain, but instead, because of the embarrassing reaction he was having in a different region of his body. He couldn't help but panic as he felt something grow and shook his legs but T'Challa wouldn't give in. Of all the days to wear sweatpants instead of his traditional Wakandan attire, it had to be this one. Whenever  _incidents_ like this occurred, Erik put it down to adrenaline, but this was different. He was going dizzy and felt like a balloon someone didn't know when to stop inflating. Like he about to burst, or something was about to ooze.  

"Why are you so scared? Too much pain?"  

Both of them were sweating but Erik was  _glistening_ and he knew it was all over as soon as it'd grown fully. But the worse was to come, T'Challa grabbed his hands with one arm and placed them underneath to be pinned with the rest of him. He didn't question why Erik barely even attempted to keep his hands to himself but continued to twist and now both of his nipples were being curled. 

"What if I do this?"  

T'Challa didn't realize the torture he was putting Erik through and pushed it further, twisting harder and forcing Erik to arch his back after ten seconds, almost stabbing himself with something T'Challa didn't recognize until he thought about it. Erik's eyes had rolled to the back of his head and he couldn't contain it, breathing heavy after he'd unloaded in his pants. His erection was no longer present, but the aftermath remained throbbing as it lowered. He was laid on his back, panting with his eyes making their way back to level. 

"Was that your..."  

"Shut the fuck up. Just shut up."  

"Erik, I'm sorry, I-"  

He couldn't finish his sentence and Erik slammed the door after leaving, clearly embarrassed and angry. His exit forced T'Challa to sit on the floor with all the guilt in the world and a cousin who no longer liked him. The door remained closed for the conclusion of the day and T'Challa felt like the world's biggest moron. Truth be told, he didn't even care if Erik had a crush on him, all he wanted to do was let him know it was okay. Erik slept in the guest room, crying angry and ashamed tears but he refused to regret how he felt about T'Challa. It may have been wrong, it may have been sick and it may have been unorthodox but it's what his heart wanted.  

T'Challa's eyes watered for a long duration of the night and his mind crossed many factors that seemed to render him oblivious to the seemingly obvious situation. Every morning, he was the first one to ask T'Challa how his slumber was, the stares and admiration of his body during training when they sparred together. All of it made him feel tremendously inconsiderate of his feelings, Erik must have felt so confused and here T'Challa was inadvertently turning and leading him on. His father trained him to identity what couldn't be seen but only read by the way someone acted and he'd failed so badly to see his cousin's true feelings. 

The next morning was a slow one for both T'Challa and Erik. Neither man had any duties – Erik spent most of his days casually enjoying Wakanda and T'Challa had no meetings to attend with his father so, with no reason to leave the house, he had no choice but to break the ice. Erik threw his pillow back and forth against the wall to pass the time and swiveled his head after hearing three gentle knocks. He stood up from his bed and walked forward to the door, moving his ear closer to the door. Something in his mind told him who the culprit was but he wanted to hear it as if it would make things better. 

"Who is it?" 

For a few seconds, silence polluted the atmosphere and Erik felt like an idiot for even asking but he heard the sound of someone clearing their throat and he sighed. 

"It's me, T'Challa. I was hoping you would let me in, maybe we could talk." 

The door clicked and opened so T'Challa took it as an invitation and pushed it all the way open. Erik's lack of words set the mood early into the reunion and it definitely affected how T'Challa felt about talking to him. He cleared his throat again and sat next to Erik, who shuffled a bit away from him.  

"I would like to apologize for my actions yesterday, I should have understood you were uncomfortable and gotten off you." 

Erik chuckled and wiped his eye. 

"Shit, T, you ain't got nothing to say sorry for. It's me who should be apologizing for being so weird man. Sorry for making you feel awkward around me." 

T'Challa gave him a look as if he'd slapped him across the face and erected his eyebrow. 

"Erik...I understand you may feel embarrassed about what happened yesterday but I need you to know, it's perfectly reasonable. Sometimes...we feel a way about people that we know we shouldn't and it makes us afraid to discuss our feelings. Now, I'm not saying it's  _wrong_ to feel the way you do, but I can see why you would be hesitant to say anything." 

T'Challa laid a palm on Erik's shoulder and rubbed it gently but Erik stood up and broke away. 

"No, man! I don't regret how I feel but it just feels so wrong. You're my fucking  _cousin_! T, I'mma keep it real with you right now, the way you make me feel is so...it's just good. Like, you have the soul of a saint and the body of a god but...I don't know. It's just  _you_ I want to be with." 

Once again, a devastating silence tore through the atmosphere and T'Challa was the one to stand up. He closed Erik's door and when he returned, Erik was crying to himself with his back to T'Challa. 

"T'Challa...you know what it's like to be me? To get called a fuckin'  _monkey_ and  _boy_ by the goddamn people who claim to  _'protect'_ us? To be the fuckin'  _faggot_  ass  _loner_  whose daddy got killed when he was younger? All my life, T'Challa, I've been labeled and it's not fair that the only person I care about is the one guy I can't even try to be with!" 

Erik's lips shook and his tears were heavy, so T'Challa pulled him in for a tight hug and he let anything he held in out. It didn't seem inappropriate and it wasn't. The hug was merely a gesture of love. But not in the way Erik wished, although this would suffice. 

"I'm afraid I cannot compare our situations, but I can offer some understanding." 

Erik laughed and tried to wipe his tears but found T'Challa doing it for him with his thumb. 

"T'Challa, no offense, but you're bisexual, at least you like  _women_ too. Everything seems to be going well for you and Nakia." 

"Actually, we broke up last week. You may have noticed me losing sleep recently, it’s not just been because of training. We were in a strong relationship but simply could not see each other enough to call ourselves boyfriend and girlfriend." 

Suddenly Erik felt selfish and he squeezed T'Challa's shoulder. 

"I'm sorry to hear that." 

"Ah, it's okay. We both needed end it before it got worse." 

Erik sat with him on the bed and looked into his eyes, still having red ones of his own. 

"T'Challa...if we weren't related, would we have a chance?" 

T'Challa had to think about it for a few seconds and Erik wondered if maybe he could put everything to the side to see the bigger picture. Maybe if they got through the controversy together, it would be less bad for them.  

"I would not discard the idea, no. I couldn't say for certain. I mean, you do have a tremendous body and your sense of humor is....entertaining, to say the least. The only problem is that I am not sure where I want to go from now. After all, I couldn't bear the thought of entering a new relationship only to have the same issues." 

Hearing that there was a chance brought a small smile to Erik's face and his cheeks became warm. 

"Come on, T. You can't leave me hanging on a rope you vibranium fox, you." 

T'Challa raised his hands in surrender and grinned in guilty fashion, revealing the teeth that made his smile so perfect. 

"Okay...fine.  _One_ time, last year, when we were at the cinema watching that movie with earthquakes. I reached in for popcorn and when your hand brushed against mine, it felt cozy. Like leaving your palms over a campfire." 

There had been more times like this for T'Challa but that memory was the strongest. Erik had purposely left his hand in there longer than he should have, and the mockery of flirting gave both men something to hang onto for happiness.  

"When did you first realize you had a crush on me?" 

T'Challa said it so casually it didn't sound weird or awkward, but like they'd forgotten who they were. Erik hated the way it sounded, like he was a schoolgirl in a drama series, but he focused on his earliest memory and realized just how long he'd felt about T'Challa. 

"Well, I guess for a long time. I just didn't realize it 'cos every time I thought about it, I threw those thoughts away. The popcorn thing was probably the first time I was aware of my feelings for you, but I just forgot about it." 

The moisture on Erik's face had dried and he no longer looked like he had been crying. 

"It seems like you are doing much better, Erik. Would you care to join me for breakfast, I can make us something if you want?" 

"I'd like that," he smiled. 

Both of them left Erik's room, Erik being the second one and he closed the door behind him before joining T'Challa once again. They walked down the stairs in not so much of an awkward silence, but instead a joyful stroll pondering about their conversation. The duo reached the kitchen shortly after and Erik sat at the table, scoping T'Challa and this time he didn't feel bad about it. 

"You know, just because of our conversation, it does not pardon you staring at my ass every day," he smiled, prompting Erik to giggle and look away.  

"I just don't get it, how can you be wearing such loose pajamas and still have it stick out so much?" 

"It's called squats, Erik." 

"It's called being thick, T'Challa." 

T'Challa grinned and gave a  _tsk_ as he cracked the eggs in front of him. 

"So, have you ever, like, done it with a dude?" 

The prince's heart paced and he coughed in shock, giving Erik his answer. 

"I've never  _done_ it with anybody. I'm still  _pure_ as they say." 

He wasn't lying. Through his experiences of relationships, he'd never found the confidence to engage in sexual intercourse, especially when he wasn't ready. With Nakia, it was almost impossible because of the conflict of time – she was constantly going on missions around the world and whenever she was in Wakanda, T'Challa was training to become the Black Panther. But it didn't bring shame to him, only gratitude that he hadn't wasted his first time on something that would not work out. 

As the eggs fried he stepped over to Erik and gave him a playful expression. 

"What about you? Have you...rode the pony?" 

"First of all, that's  _exactly_ why you ain't borrowing my mp3 player again. Secondly, yeah I've had sex before. Plenty'a times. But to be honest, they've always been in the United States, I ain't gotten freaky here yet." 

T'Challa's hand swirled to stir the eggs and he smiled at the honesty from his cousin, appreciating his respect for Wakanda. After a while, the eggs were scrambled and he picked up two plates for both him and Erik. 

"Would you pass me the juice? It's in the refrigerator." 

"Sure thing." 

Erik stumbled to the refrigerator and pulled out a half-empty bottle of orange juice, placing it on the table as T'Challa poured the eggs onto the plates. He finally joined Erik at the table and looked at the bottle, accepting the fact there were no cups. They began eating and Erik still didn't develop any table manners, despite T'Challa being aware of his crush. 

"You do realize half of the food you ate is second-hand right?" T'Challa chuckled. Erik looked up and paused, telling T'Challa he was clueless about the sentence. 

"What do you mean, bruh?" 

T'Challa pointed to his mouth and his plate, watching his eyes follow his finger. 

"The food goes  _in_ your mouth, then half of it drops out, back onto the plate only for you to eat it again. Every action..." 

"...has an equal and opposite reaction." 

T'Challa smirked and so did Erik, although only one of them had a mouthful as they did so. 

"Somebody's been listening to my scientific rambles. I thought you  _hated_ it when I quoted scientists?" 

Erik swallowed his eggs and licked his lips, beaming with happiness at the sight of T'Challa pushing for an answer. 

"Well...I guess you just make it interesting, T.  I could listen to you talk about the laws of motion  _all day_." 

"Thanks, I guess. Now I know if the Black Panther doesn't work for me, I could always become a teacher," he laughed. Erik laughed loudly as well and took a swig of the orange juice. 

"Shut the fuck up, man. Want some?" 

T'Challa nodded and accepted the bottled gesture, glugging it as he stared at Erik.  

"Why do you use such language so much? You never seem to use it to offend, but more like a comma or sentence filler." 

T'Challa did not have a problem with Erik swearing but his curiosity played with him and he had noticed the way Erik used the derogatory words. It added intensity to his words, but not toxic-masculinity. 

"I don't know, I guess it's just a tic for me. I have a lot of habits, T'Challa." 

T'Challa wiped his mouth and noticed there was truth to what he was saying. Whenever Erik grew annoyed, he'd stick his tongue firmly between his teeth, his dimples would become more pronounced and he would frown in the tiniest way. To most, the expression made it seem like he was feeling the heat of Wakanda but T'Challa could tell when he was angry. It was also why he'd be the first person to comfort Erik and if needs be, calm him down.  

They finished the last of the food on their plates and sighed, both of them were clearly satisfied with the food. T'Challa and Erik took turns drinking the orange juice until T'Challa was the victor who finished it. 

"You've nothing planned for today, right?" 

Erik was intrigued as to where the topic was going and shook his head, slumping back into his chair. 

"What did you have planned?" 

"A few things. Maybe we could have a sparring session, then find somewhere to go after." 

It wasn't a terrible idea. Fuck, it was a brilliant one. But Erik wasn't sure if he was ready to be so close to T'Challa again after the prior day's incident. 

"Fine...but a few sparring rules." 

"Go ahead." 

"No bullshit, okay? None of that nipple twisting shit," he started. T'Challa smiled at him and owned a guilty grin. 

"Okay, I can agree to that. But that means no cheek pinching." 

"That's fine by me. And no fucking tickling either, that shit's not for me," he insisted. Erik was haunted by T'Challa's silence as he stood up. 

"Oh...but Erik...your laugh, it's so contagious." 

Erik backed away from his chair and raised his fists, moving away from T'Challa. 

"I'm being serious, T, back the fuck up and agree to it!" 

T'Challa wiggled his fingers in the air to taunt Erik and it sent shivers down his spine. 

"I don't think I can," T'Challa teased and he ran towards Erik, who immediately sprinted and darted out of the house. Of course, T'Challa wasn't going to exploit his cousin's weakness, but he knew another habit Erik had. Falling asleep as soon as he finished eating. So, he knew he had to find a way to get him out of the house, and it worked. 

He loved knowing how Erik worked. 


End file.
